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Piggy Piggy!

My mother has had a fair influence on me, especially with regards to "getting lost". Getting lost basically involves a day of driving around Kent with no real direction, picking out unfamiliar lanes and seeing what we discover- mostly taking pleasure in uncovering markets and farm shops. We went on a getting lost session recently and discovered the lovely Roundwood Orchard Farm.

Chris & Bev Brown have been farming rare breed pigs for 21 years, and let me tell you, they do a bloody good job! Their farm shop is tiny, but proficient and Bev is the jolliest, friendliest proprietor I have ever had the pleasure of encountering. All meat is cured by Bev on site and they offer some more old fashioned (read better), cuts of meat; I highly recommend the collar bacon. I've been having fantasies about it ever since my last visit and I can't wait to find a spare hour to go and stock up on all my porky needs.

The pigs are reared on both pig nuts and the fallen orchard fruit, which I'm willing to believe adds to the gorgeous flavour of the delicious little porkers. Their ethics are also on display for all the world to see and children (read me), can even go and feed the piggies an apple.

They feature at several farmer's markets and also supply beef they raise and can provide gluten free sausages with a little warning- yay! I will be doing my best to make Bev my new best friend and learn her curing methods whilst also indulging in my favourite meat ever.

Get me to cater for you!

Having an interest in cooking means being able to facilitate a constant state of eating. Ergo I bloody love cooking.
Up until quite recently I would eat anything and everything, even the things that other people would physically recoil from. Shockingly, as I've now completed my 20s, I've realised there are a lot more things I can no longer stomach.
Somehow I've ended up both gluten free and vegan. And despite it sounding really restrictive, it's actually bloody easy. I should know, I'm a pretty basic cook, really - and just look at the variety of food I make and have available to me! It's immense and "making things vegan" has actually reignited my passion for cooking. Who'd have known?!
Expect a glug of vegan and gluten free recipes, a drizzle of my life story and a rare bonus dash of something I can't stick in my face. I will also attempt humour, so a pinch of salt to hand is recommended.